Posted on 08/22/2016 2:09:22 PM PDT by drewh
Spider-Man has many powers: Wall-crawling, web-slinging… and race-bending.
According to a story posted by The Wrap, 19-year-old Disney Channel star Zendaya is set to play Mary Jane Watson in next year’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, a re-reboot that will see young British actor Tom Holland as a high school-aged Peter Parker.
This is a great idea. It’s 2016, why couldn’t – or shouldn’t – Spidey have a love interest who isn’t white? And many people agree, with Twitter and Facebook full of responses from folks who think a black Mary Jane is a fantastic choice.
But, as always, there are pockets of dissent, ranging from stubborn fans to outright racists. Which is puzzling, frankly. Not that this kind of ignorance still exists – you need only look at the U.S. presidential campaign to see that racism has been emboldened by a candidate who thinks prejudice and xenophobia are acceptable, and even commendable.
Rather, it’s that people are still freaking out over comic book colourblindness.
Off the top of my head, I can think of five black actors who’ve played characters that were traditionally white in the comics – Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Idris Elba as Heimdall, Michael B. Jordan as Johnny Storm, Michael Clarke Duncan as Kingpin and Will Smith as Deadshot. Some of them were good. Some were great. All gave us a different perspective on the character.
None, as far as I’m aware, brought about the apocalypse.
The “it’s not how it’s written in the comics!” refrain just doesn’t wash. A film is not a slavish recreation of its source material, and thank goodness – had Captain America: Civil War been faithful to the Civil War comics, it would have been a bloated, incomprehensible mess.
From the comic book page to the movie screen, costumes get changed. Powers get changed. Backstories get changed. Characters’ physical appearances get changed. These are creative choices made in service to the film.
Do they always work? No. But in the case of Marvel Studios, who are co-producing Homecoming with Sony Pictures, these decisions are being made by people who are very, very good at what they do, and spending very, very large amounts of their own money on the process. As frustrating as it may be to hear, they know better than we do.
I admit, I always had a thing for Mary Jane, with her luscious red hair and impossible curves. But just as the talented Kirsten Dunst didn’t look like the MJ in my mind when she played the character in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man movies, the biracial Zendaya will bring a different look to Mary Jane in Homecoming – if that is indeed the role she’s been cast in. And that’s really cool.
Does Zendaya have the acting chops for what might be a relatively meaty role in a major superhero movie? I’m not sure. She’s got great energy and plenty of talent, but we’ll have to wait and see. Does indie film director Jon Watts have the directing chops to be behind the camera for a major superhero movie? I’m not sure. His film Cop Car was really good and he’s a smart guy, but we’ll have to wait and see.
Yet, oddly, he isn’t subjected to the same amount of Internet scrutiny.
Kind of makes your Spidey senses tingle.
Since I wasn’t into Marvel comic books, I can’t really say if she looks the part or not. I’ve only seen Zendaya in commercials, and I thought she is cute.
I’ve only seen her with long hair. With short hair, she looks like Justin Bieber. =8-0>
Sony/Columbia keep having to use the Spider Man character or it reverts to Disney/Marvel.
Peter Parker aka Spider is supposed to be a physics graduate student.
I agree since “total creativity” is to take a already established character & story line and “re-invent” it. That’s much more “artistic” then a new character & story. (Do I need to put the sarcasm tag?)
Spider=Spiderman
Looks like an octroon. Could even pass the paper bag test.
Racism, Racism, Racism .....
There is really nothing much more to talk about, especially coming from gadflies in the low-margin overrated but sassy loud entertainment segment of the economy, especially from the Canuckian variety of that sewage segment.
How many others, I wonder, stopped right there.
I'm a comic fan who would not have a problem with non-white MJ; but I would prefer they either create a new character or stick with the original comic book depiction. How hard would it be to simply have Spidey meet a new girl?
this movie will be a dud before the first ticket is sold
PC morons have never figured out their bs is the kiss of death on everything.
(and yes, spiderman was my hero when i was growing up... this crap just freakin kills me)
How come not a real, dark black black woman wit da fro??
“How come not a real, dark black black woman wit da fro??”
No kidding. It is Blacks that should be upset by this whitewashing.
#BBBWM
That is the problem, though....most "reboots" rarely are. And in the case of Spiderman, they got it right the first time. The first reboot with the teen Spidey was horrid. I shudder to think what this one will be like.
The first Fantastic Four wasn't up to the first Spiderman, but it was still far better than the "reboot".
Most recent case....Ben Hur. How could anyone think they can do better than Charlton Heston???
It appears that there must be a new drug on the Hollywood scene that is sapping what little real creativity was left.
As long as she plays a pretty young woman with a decent attitude and they don’t try to turn it into a race debate role, I have no problem with it.
Good luck with that though.
You just can’t come up with a good word to mix black and white.
It’s either “blight” or “whack”.
She’s a looker whatever she is.
Do these Zendaya things have last names ?
Or is it one of those ?
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